Neon Genesis Den O
by Yun Lao
Summary: A train far astray from its path among the sands of time finds itself in a forgotten time threatened by both past and future. This time, if not all time, now lies in the hands of its Singularity Point, Shinji Ikari.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

--

The night air on the rooftop was refreshing, especially after such a hot day. Shinji Ikari closed his eyes as he embraced it, the nearby tremors caused by the rampaging angel lacked the fear it once would have had to him, even as it turned its sights upon him. "Shinji, what are you doing?!" Misato screamed at the monitor of NERV control quickly hearing Asuka's voice right after her outburst with one of her own, "What's that idiot doing?! He's lost it!" Misato had no idea what was going through Shinji's mind, the Shinji she knew would have been terrified, but ever since that incident, it's been like…

"It's like someone else is in the cockpit…" Ritsuko said, completing Misato's thought. "Asuka, Rei, distract the angel!" Misato finally commanded, responded with a silent nod from Rei and a resentful one from Asuka, "I am going to strangle that idiot when I get my hands on him!" Both EVAs made their way toward the angel who now rearing back with its large hand. "We're not gonna make it!" Asuka cried out as the angel swung forth, its hand burying itself into the skyscraper, sending large chunks of concrete and steel falling to the streets below. Parked cars -abandoned upon the evacuation- were crushed like toys, the streets themselves now nothing more than craters peppered in between the nearby buildings. The angel slammed its hand down again, causing the building to buckle. Grabbing it with its other hand, it tore off the crumbling upper half before turning to strike EVA Unit 0 with it, however, by this time Misato found herself unable to watch as any hope for Shinji vanished, her gaze falling to the floor.

How could she let this happen? Perhaps if she had watched over Shinji a bit more carefully after what had happened two days ago, she might have prevented this.

"Commander!" Lieutenant Hyuga called out as his widened eyes became fixed upon the monitor, forcing Misato's gaze to rise as well; eyes widening just as well from what she found herself witnessing. It was Shinji, standing upon the building top across the street. It seemed utterly impossible, like a feat from a character out of one of Hyuga's manga. No one could jump that far, could they?

Meanwhile, Shinji finally opened his eyes revealing a bright crimson hue in his irises as well as a streak of the same hue running up now spiked hair. Such a radical change was topped off by a large devilish grin as the Third Child assumed a pose, crying out with a much different voice,

"Ore…sanjou!!"


	2. Chapter One: No Leaf Clover

**Chapter One: No Leaf Clover**

--

_Two Days Ago_…

The orange hue of the twilight skies was the only thing greeting Shinji Ikari as he walked home from class. Usually he took the train but today he had been too late in catching it. The thought of calling Misato had came to mind, but he didn't want to be a bother; that is if she was even sober, or conscious for that matter. At first he thought a walk would do him well, but after a few miles he simply slumped his shoulders and trudged on. At least he wouldn't have to worry about missing the train in a few days once summer vacation started. His conflicting thoughts were soon disrupted by the soft rumble and familiar sounds of an oncoming train. "A train? Here?" Shinji didn't recall any nearby train tracks. Turning, his eyes nearly bugged out of his head as he saw a bullet train coming straight at him.

He never even got to scream…

--

_He doesn't look so good…_

_Of course he doesn't, baka! The poor kid just got ran over by a train!_

_I know that!! What should we do about him?_

--

Misato Katsuragi looked to the floor, guilt and a sense of helplessness haunting her. It had been hours since the phone call from the hospital, and yet no one knew what had happened to Shinji. Apparently he had somehow walked himself into the hospital, signed his own medical papers and just collapsed. Glancing up as she heard the sounds of footsteps, brief relief was given as she saw Ritsuko Akagi approach. Though she had asked Ritsuko to come just for company, it seemed that her help was needed with the lack of help at the hospital since the last Angel attack, "How is he?" Misato asked as she rose from the hospital bench. "Physically, all he has is a broken rib, fractured arm, and a lot of bruises…however that's the good news." Ritsuko replied. "Good news? What's wrong?" Ristuko shook her head, "It's strange. Shinji's mental stress has suddenly multiplied. It's like…I guess the best theory would be that it's like the personalities of multiple people were suddenly crammed into his mind." Ritsuko finally explained, yet found Misato's gaze elsewhere, "Hey! Are you listening?!"

Misato walked past her, forcing Ritsuko to look and see just what the other was so focused on, "Shinji!" Nearly tackling the poor boy off his feet, Misato beamed brightly as she finally saw the Third Child. Realizing his injuries, she quickly apologized before taking a step back. "Did they release you?" Shinji nodded with a smile, "Yes, the doctor said I should take it easy for a few days." Suddenly he found his good wrist grabbed before he dragged toward the door by Misato, "Let's go home! I'm sure Asuka and Pen-pen have been worried about you as well!"

Watching them, Ritsuko couldn't help but think that something was wrong. Just a moment ago the doctor and she had decided to keep Shinji under observation for a few days. Making her way to the doctor's office, she found the doctor was blushing and swooning over something, "Why did you let him go?" Ritsuko asked. The doctor gave a small giggle before she finally responded, "Shinji-sama had assured me that he was fine, so I let him. He certainly is a cute boy and those blue eyes are so beautiful…they're almost hypnotic…" Ritsuko couldn't hold back her confusion, "Blue eyes? Shinji doesn't have blue eyes."

Meanwhile as Shinji slipped into Misato's car, a brief smirk was given as his brown eyes flashed a bright blue.


	3. Chapter Two: Behind Blue Eyes

**Chapter Two: Behind Blue Eyes**

--

The morning was as normal as usual for Shinji Ikari as he walked into his school, his gaze lowering some to the floors as he took the familiar path to his class. Feeling awkward from the glances he was given due to his arm currently in a sling, Shinji nearly ran into two girls. Instead of shouts that he should watch where he was going he found that both weren't angry at all, but rather curious, "Looks like that rumor about you having to go to the hospital was true, after all." One of the girls said. "What happened?" The second one asked, prompting Shinji to glance to the side. His own confusion about the situation brought him to admit, "I…I don't know…" "What do you mean you don't know?" The second girl replied, her brows rising in confusion. Shinji's good hand gripped tightly around the handle of his book bag, unsure of what to do. He had no idea of what had happened yesterday except recalling a train hitting him, but no one would believe that, "I bet you're faking it." The first of two girls accused, bring Shinji to direct his gaze to the floor yet again, the teen's bangs covering his face for a brief moment. "C'mon, did you really go to the hospital?" The first asked, no doubt expecting him to admit that he had somehow been lying about the whole thing.

"If you must know…" Shinji said, pulling back his head to reveal bright blue eyes, "It was the small price I paid to save someone's life." The Third Child replied with a slight smirk as he ran a hand through his hair, leaving behind a blue streak in it. "You saved someone?" One of the girls asked, both of their eyes widening. The blue eyed Shinji nodded, "Yes, a mother and her child, however, it seems there is not enough time to fully tell the tale. Perhaps we could speak about it sometime after class?" He asked, running the back of his occupied hand gently across one of the girls' faces, causing her to swoon before nearly fainting against her friend. Walking away, Shinji managed to get to his classroom before leaning against the doorframe.

Dropping his book bag, his hand grabbed his face as he fought control back from whatever had possessed him. The streak in his hair vanished, as did the change of eye color as he reined in control of his own body. When he felt the presence was gone, he lowered his hand and looked upon it in horrified thought, _What's wrong with me?!_

--

"Interesting." The imagin, Urataros said to himself as he took his seat on the DenLiner. Not even a moment after he sat down, Momotaros' boot slammed onto the table top as the red imagin took his usual pose, "Have fun, ya perverted turtle?" Urataros chuckled to himself. "Stop laughing!" Momotaros barked, "Forgive me, sempai, but I couldn't help but see the envy in your eyes." "Who's envious of some perverted turtle?!" The other grumbled before stomping off. Taking Momotaros' place came Kohana, who simply crossed her arms before she spoke, "Remember, you're only going out there to find out where we are, so don't be causing any troubles, got it?" "Kohana-chan, your words hurt me. I would never act so carelessly in such a foreign place." Urataros said, feinting hurt. "You better or you're going to be hurting a lot more and won't be from words." Kohana warned before she smiled, walking off.

--

As many of the other students were busy going to eat their lunches on their lunch break, Asuka Soryu clenched her fists as she stormed to the roof. Rumors had quickly spread like wildfire about Shinji saving some woman and her child. Unfortunately for him, Asuka didn't believe a bit of it. Flinging open the door to the roof she stepped out shouting, "Shinji! Just what--" She just had to pause as she found herself witnessed to a most bizarre scene.

Seated in chair surrounded by many of the girls attending their class, Shinji Ikari leaned his head back to pull off a cherry that one of the girls held out for him, prompting several giggles from them. Leaning his head up to look to Asuka, Shinji pushed up a pair of glasses he currently wore; his blue eyes gleaming as he finished her question, "Just what am I doing? I am just enjoying the friendly company of so many beautiful girls." He replied, bringing forth another collective giggle.

"No! You All! Inside!!" Asuka shouted, causing the other girls to reluctantly leave Shinji, "Call me later, Shinji-sama!" One called out before the door closed, leaving Asuka alone with him. Even before Shinji could completely rise, Asuka seized him by his collar, "I don't know what happened yesterday, but I sure as hell know you didn't save someone!" She accused, yet strangely Shinji smirked, those almost hypnotic blue eyes locking onto her gaze, "Won't you let me string you along?" "What?" His hand rose, caressing her left cheek during her confusion, "If it is jealously over those girls that spurs your anger, fear not. Your beauty far surpasses theirs." Asuka was stunned; she didn't know what to say. Though much prepared to punch him, she found herself turning away, blushing fiercely as she ran off back into the building.

"Looks like I've found myself a pond full of fish." He said with a smirk, yet his pleasant thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a voice that sliced through the air. "URATAROS!!" Turning, eyes widening as he saw Kohana charge him, he raised his hands, "Kohana-chan, it isn't what you th--!!" Before he could finish explaining himself her fist slammed into his stomach, expelling the turtle imagin from the boy and, unfortunately, knocking the boy out.

From the DenLiner hovering next to the rooftop, Momotaros shouted out, "Heh, nice shot!" Only to receive a glare from the small girl, causing him to pull his head back in the train. Looking back to Urataros, Kohana simply commanded, "Bring him into the DenLiner, Owner wants to talk to him."


	4. Chapter Three: Double Trouble

**Chapter Three: Double Trouble**

--

_Oy! __Hanakuso On'na! The kid's stirring --!! OW!! What was that for?!_

_Shut up! He's trying to say something…_

"D-don't…don't leave m-me…."

…

_Nani? What's with that look?! You don't mean…?_

_Hai…_

_--_

Shinji would have found the gentle swaying to be almost comforting were it not for the fact that his head felt like someone had struck it with a sledgehammer. Groaning, he sat up only to find a wet cloth that was once upon his head fall onto his lap. "Where am I?" He mumbled as he opened his eyes.

"Konnichiwa!!"

Shinji jumped back, slamming the back of his head against a wall causing him to whine in pain. Frantically rubbing the newer of his head injuries he focused on just what had scared the living crap out of him. Wearing a large smile, it turned out to be a waitress in leather bearing a drink. Placing saucer and cup before him, Shinji raised a brow as he saw only white and bright red cream shaped into a heart. "This is Naomi-chan's Special New Friend Greeting Coffee! Enjoy!" She announced with a wink before watching him like a much-too-friendly vulture. Picking up the cup, he figured that she seemed nice enough –or rather, feared how she would react to his refusal more than any fear of whatever the drink had in it -- and took a sip. "Wow…this is good…much better than what I've had before." Naomi's smile seemed to grow even larger before walked off. Within the speed Shinji took to have another sip, Naomi was replaced.

"Hiya!"

Turning Shinji's eyes widened some before a brow rose as he found himself face to face with a most peculiar person, "…what are you? Some cosplayer?" Shinji asked. The other appeared to be wearing some type of life-like purple dragon mask along with headphones blaring hip hop, a dark leather coat and white gloves. Titling his head, the other asked, "Cosplayer?" "Erm…nevermind." Despite any confusion, the purple one shoved a drawing before him. At first it looked like a crayon doodle done by any child, but upon further inspection of the picture Shinji nearly found his crotch sporting his coffee. It was a person being struck by a bullet train, "That's you!" The purple one replied cheerfully. Making his way out of his chair, Shinji sought to escape the train.

"Oy!" Slamming a boot on a nearby table, raising a knee up and ultimately blocking Shinji's path was another was of the supposed cosplayer; this one appearing to be a red demon of sorts. "So yer the one..." The red one murmured, an annoyed tone held in his voice. Shinji backed away, barely squeaking out,"You must have me confused with someone else!" Turning to run, he found himself slamming into yet another one. The blue turtle clad man chuckled. "It seems the waters are awfully choppy today." He found himself trapped by these weird people, and found himself in a middle of a panic attack. There was no escape! What did they want? Hadn't they done enough to him?! Had they come to finish the job?! Suddenly from a seat nearby, an occupant snored, causing the last shock. Thus the Third Child fainted.

--

"Ura, Momo…you bakas!!" Two small fists planted themselves into the two imagins' stomach, causing both of them to double over. "What was that for, you little twerp?!" Momotaros complained as he writhed on the ground. "You scared him." Kohana grumbled.

--

When Shinji awoke, he was still on the train, yet he found himself in a seat before an older man currently eating fried rice. "Looks like you're awake…Mr. Ikari." The older man announced before taking a spoonful of rice in his mouth, focusing on a small flag within the rice. "…where…where am I?" Shinji finally asked by instinct, causing the older man to simply smile as he finished another spoonful. "You are on the DenLiner…the train of time."

"Train…of Time?" Blinking, Shinji's mind began to clear up. Turning to see the several strange people from before, he asked on, "Who are they? Better yet…who are you?" The older man paused before putting down his spoon, "I am the Owner of the DenLiner…and they are what we call Imagins." "Imagins? Is that some type of cosplay?" The Owner began to laugh, "No, an Imagin is a being from the future."

_A being from the future_…Shinji eyes widened some, "Like the Angels?!"

"Angels?" Placing his cup of coffee earlier before the young boy, Naomi was suddenly taken back with that question. Putting her finger to her chin, she broke into a fit of giggles upon the thought of the Taros wearing white robes with halos. "So cute! Hehe!!" Owner, however, corrected Shinji, "No. Though we have only learned about your 'Angels' I do not believe Imagins are like them." Glancing to one of the windows of the dining car, Owner continued, "As I said, the DenLiner is a train of time. We traverse time to protect it from all threats…however recently the DenLiner was derailed on our current journey by currently unknown means. When it was over, we found ourselves here."

"Derailed?" Though Shinji couldn't be sure if the man was senile or telling the truth, but decided to keep his skeptic thoughts to himself for now. "This time in which you live, Mr. Ikari, is a forgotten time; tucked away beneath the sands of time. Though forgotten, the tracks still remain. When we derailed, our only choice was to land on these tracks. Unfortunately the neglect upon them made controlling the train difficult…" "…that's when you hit me, right?" "I apologize. The best thing we could do to save you was to have them form a bond with you."

"Them?" He turned back to the Imagin; the red one was in a grumpy mood, sitting away from the others, the blue one was playing with a child's fishing rod, the purple busy coloring in the picture of Shinji being hit by the train, a yellow one was asleep and snoring. "A bond?" "Yes, an Imagin possesses the ability to bond with a human under a verbal contract." "A contract? I don't remember a contract…" It was only then that he recalled one of his strange dreams.

_D-don't…don't leave m-me…._

The train rocked, causing all but the yellow imagin and the Owner to look toward a window. The older man's eyes nearly bugged out as he saw a small flag in the middle of his fried rice fall, causing him to raise his hands; fingertips pointing down and the backs of his hands pressed against his face.

"What's going on!?" The red imagin shouted. Looking out a window, Shinji's eyes once more widened, "It's an Angel!"


	5. Chapter Four: Hero’s Come Back!

**Chapter Four: Hero's Come Back!!**

--

"Where the hell is that idiot?!" Asuka growled within Eva Unit 2, waiting for the preparations to complete. Upon the lower right corner of her display screen, Misato's face appeared, "_We still haven't found him, but Rei will be assisting you in Unit 0._" "Yeah yeah, whatever…" The Second Child grumbled, left to do nothing but imagine the various ways she could strangle Shinji.

--

Tinted glasses reflected the images from the monitor that depicted the movement of the angel known as Israfel, as he sat at his desk, his arms propped on its surface while those white gloved hands came together against his chin. There was no word of Shinji's return and thus, Unit 1 was forced to remain there. Keeping his gaze upon the screen, he announced, "Fit Unit 1 with the dummy plug…" Fuyutsuki, who had patiently standing nearby blinked, "But the dummy plug system isn't finished yet." Gendou looked over to his friend, those glasses still reflecting the monitor's gleam as he replied, "…consider it a mid-production rest run…" With a sigh, Fuyutsuki nodded.

--

"It's an Angel. I have to go and help them!" Shinji said, only to feel a hand grip his shoulder. Turning, he saw the red Imagin, chuckling as he announced, "Calm down, kid, we'll help ya! I've been itchin' for a fight for a while!" Breaking away from Momotaros, he was once more addressed. "Mr. Ikari, I want you to hold onto these for now…" Owner announced, holding in his hand a strange belt and what looked to be a train pass. Taking it, Shinji looked back to Owner, "Why me? What is this?" The Owner simply replied, "When the time comes, you'll know…" With that, he made his way to another car.

--

Asuka had devised quite a number of ways to beat Shinji in the time before the EVAs were deployed, both Unit 2 and 0 crouched before the ocean. "Two against one is not what I call a fair fight. It's not fair." Asuka said, awaiting sign of the Angel's arrival. "_We don't get a choice. Survival takes priority_." Misato replied through the comm. Suddenly, a great geyser of water shot into the air from the ocean the seventh angel emerged; almost humanoid in appearance with a yin yang styled face. With that Misato gave the order, "_Commence attack!_"

"I'll handle this Angel! You cover me!" Asuka announced to Rei, whose only response was a faint nod before Unit 0 began unloading shots from its assault rifle. "Charge!" Rushing forth, armed with the sonic glaive, Unit 2 trudged across buildings before leaping up. The Angel, seemingly content to stare as the EVA descended, was bisected with ease. However, it seemed the battle was not over, but rather, had just begun as the yin yang face disappeared, only to be replaced by a full mask. The halves were seemingly shed off as they reformed into two separate Angels, bring forth a cry from Misato, "_What's this crap_?!"

--

Watching as the halves of the seventh Angel proceeded to go on the assault, Gendou could tell that the EVAs would be defeated. "Unit 1 has been deployed." Fuyutsuki announced, though his friend showed no response; merely keeping his gaze on the monitor.

--

The DenLiner moved on after Shinji was deposited on the ground with nothing more than a strange belt, a train pass, and a head full of questions. A rumble nearby stole his attention as he saw EVA Unit 2 struggling with an Angel. Another rumble revealed a similar scene with Rei in her EVA, "There are two of them?" His confusion only grew as yet another rumble further off brought his gaze to a familiar sight; Unit 1. "Why is that here?!" The support team rushed forth to attach the umbilical cord, yet Unit 1 suddenly twitched. Like a cannon, the plug was launched out, causing the EVA to slump over. A loud splash could be heard as Unit 0 fell back into the ocean. Forced to watch, the feelings of helplessness filling him, Shinji hands clenched tightly around the objects Owner had given him, "Some help I am…" He murmured with disgust.

"Oy! Now's not the time to sit around!" A voice said nearby. Glancing around, it was then he noticed the red Imagin taken form through sand; his legs strangely hovering in the air above him, Momotaros upper half rose from the ground. "…but what can I do?" Shinji asked. "Don't worry about it, just leave it to me. Kicking ass is what is I do best." Momotaros replied with a chuckle. "You can fight an Angel?" "Angel, Imagin, same thing. Let's go kid."

Nodding with a smile, Shinji proceeded on.

--

"What the hell was that?" Misato asked as she witnessed Unit 1's arrival and collapse. The Angels seemed to be interested as well, pausing on their beat down of the other two EVAs. Approaching the fallen EVA, the halves reformed into one whole Angel. "This isn't good. Get Unit 1 out of there! Asuka, Rei, distract the Angel!" With the halves no longer focusing on them, the EVAs managed to climb their way out of the holes the the halves had almost buried them in. Finding Rei's discarded rifle, Asuka unloaded onto the back of the Angel, though it did nothing to deter it.

The Angel suddenly paused, turning to one building in particular. Despite it quickly approaching night, it was obviously who the Angel was looking at; Shinji Ikari. "What the hell is that idiot doing there?!" Asuka cried out. Anger turned to panic as the Angel drew back its hand. "_Asuka, Rei! Get it away from that building!"_

Unfortunately by the time they managed to get near, the Angel had smashed the building. Tearing the upper half off, the Angel struck Rei's EVA with the chunk of building, spraying concrete and steel into the air. Yet before despair could full grip them, the figure of Shinji Ikari would be found on a nearby building roof.

--

"Ore…Sanjou!!" Grinning, Momotaros was almost giddy as he stuck his pose through Shinji's body. It had been far too long since he had last fought, and this 'Angel' looked to be worthy of his skills. Slinging the belt around his waist, he tapped the red button on the belt before pointing toward the Angel. "Oy!!" Thrusting his thumb back toward him as the Angel turned to face him, Momotaros announced, "Whether Imagin or Angel, from start to finish, I'm at a Climax!!" Taking up the train pass, he swiped it across the face of the belt. "Henshin!"

_SWORD FORM_

As the crimson armor of the Sword Form locked onto his suit, the DenLiner appeared with a flash of light, coming to a stop near the ledge of the building. Looking to the train and then the deactivated EVA Unit 1, the Imagin began chuckling. "I gonna hafta even up the playing field for this one." Hopping onto the DenLiner, the bullet train shot off from the building.

_What are you going to do?_ Shinji asked within. "Easy, I'm gonna wake up that robot." _Wait…you're going to ram Unit 1?!_

"Calm down, it'll work, trust me…"

--

"That moron!!" Clenching her fist, Kohana was about to storm into the front car and punch Momotaros when Owner spoke out, once more arriving in the dining car, "You shouldn't underestimate the DenLiner, Hana. The DenLiner is a train of time; I see not why it wouldn't be prepared for such a time…"

--

_Just what is going on?_

It was the 100th time the question had ran through Misato's mind, but no matter how many times the question was asked, it seemed more and more impossible to answer with each passing moment. Shinji's injuries, his disappearance and reappearance, his transformation, and now this train that moved through the air. Slumping her shoulders and looking to the ground, she muttered, "I need a drink."

"Misato…" Hyuga pointed back to the screen where EVA Unit 1 stumbled forward as the DenLiner struck it at full speed. It should have fallen forth on its face, yet it came to pause. Like a dye dropped into water, the crimson of the bullet train began to seep across Unit 1's armor before it began to spread like some rampant virus. The attached train itself grew limp, resembling an umbilical cord the EVAs were powered from.

The crimson Unit 1 began to rise.

"The sync ratio is off the charts!"

"But the emergency power should have been depleted a while back!"

Misato grabbed her head with both hands, trying to keep her skull from imploding.

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!_

_--_

Somehow, Momotaros had found himself seated within the EVA, though since he had just previously rammed the DenLiner into the robot, he could deal with the lack of logic for the time being.

"Heh heh, told ya it would work…though for a second I wasn't sure it would work myself…"

_WHAT WAS THAT?!_

"N-Nothing!" Momotaros decided to switch the topic. "Heh, I get the feeling today's Climax is going to be a big one! LET'S GO!!"


	6. Chapter Five: Dance Epidemic

**Chapter Five: Dance Epidemic**

--

Fingers intertwined with talons as the crimson Unit 1 met the Angel in a struggle of power. Chuckling like a madman, Momotaros cried out, "Is that all?!" Driving the EVA's head forward to head butt the Angel, Unit 1 had won the struggle; their reward a free shot as the Angel stumbled backwards. Fingers curling into a fist, Momotaros drove Unit 1's fist into the Angel's face, causing its backwards stumble to grow even more unbalanced before it fell backwards into the water. Deciding to let the Angel get up, Momotaros continued chuckling, cracking his knuckles inside the cockpit.

"_Shinji, what the hell are you doing?! Finish it off!_" Misato cried out nearly causing Momotaros to jump. "Fine!" The Imagin growled, angered that his fun had been disturbed. It was about the time the Angel rose that Momotaros saw it –the sonic glaive Asuka had dropped earlier-- nearby. Picking up the fallen weapon, the Imagin sighed, "This is more like that perverted turtle's weapon." With his complaints, Momotaros failed to see that the EVA's grip left a seal much like the one adorning the train pass and belt upon the glaive. It was over when the seal lit up with a crimson glare and began to spread across the whole weapon that the Imagin's attention was captured. It was captured a bit too well.

_Look out! _

The warning from Shinji had come too late as the Angel managed to strike Unit 1, causing the mech to fall back on its rear. "Dammit! Why didn't you tell me sooner?!"

_How was I supposed to know?!_

"Feh, whatever!" Rising to its feet, Momotaros prepared to fight as best he could with the strange glaive, yet only to discover that the glaive was gone; instead replaced by sword. Only a brief moment was given before the Imagin began to laugh again, "Hehe…I love this place!" Pointing to the Angel with the EVA's free hand, Momotaros announced, "That was the only free shot you'll get today! From here on, I'm gonna be at a climax!" Within the EVA cockpit, Momotaros suddenly held up the pass used earlier to transform them. Lowering it to the buckle of his belt, he wasted little time in tossing it aside once the belt finished its announcement.

_FULL CHARGE_

Energy crackled and sparked up the length of the EVA's sword as it was gripped in both hands, "My Hissatsu Attack…" The blade of the sword suddenly broke forth from the hilt, though due the energy rushing through, the blade didn't fire off, but rather hovered over the hilt. "My Hissatsu Attack…KAIJU VERSION!!" Slashing horizontally, the blade followed his movements; its arc causing it to slice right through the Angel. Raising the blade over his head, he brought the sword down, causing the blade to now slice the Angel down the middle.

As the blade of the sword returned to the hilt, Momotaros gave a satisfied chuckle. Unit 1 turned from the remains of the Angel, its transformed sword resting on its right shoulder. Unfortunately Asuka broke through his cheerful thoughts. "_YOU DUMBASS!! LOOK AT WHAT YOU'VE DONE!!_" Confused, he turned back to the Angel, his hot blood running cold when he saw that the Angel wasn't dead, but rather…

…There were four of them now…

--

The room was dark, lit only by the projector in the back. Shinji tried to focus on the soft hum of the projector's fan in order to escape the humiliation that awaited him as they were briefed.

"Yesterday at 9:34 and 45 seconds p.m. Unit 0 was attacked by one of the targets, "Alpha" which had separated from the other target, was found one kilometer off in the bay."

The projection slide showed a picture of Unit 0's legs sticking perfectly vertical out of the waters and nothing more.

"20 seconds later, Unit 2 was stopped by target "Beta's" attack."

With a loud click, the projection slide changed, showing the crimson legs of Unit 2 sticking out from the ground; the rest of it buried beneath a hill.

"1 minute and 45 seconds later, Unit 1 was attacked by targets "Alpha," "Beta," "Gamma," and "Delta," and was stopped 15 seconds later."

Another click and Unit 1's legs were shown sticking out from the sand of the shoreline.

"I believe the Project Chairperson summed it up best." "_THIS IS PATHETIC_!"

Shinji winced, but by then the woman continued.

"Following that, Nerv ended the operation and handed control over to U.N Secondary Forces. At 9:57 p.m. the U.N Forces made an attack with a N2 mine."

Another click, and the projection now displayed the massive hole taken out the landscape, prompting a loud grumble from Fuyutsuki, "We'll have to redraw the map again!"

"They succeeded in burning off 28 of the target's structual substance."

One final click was given, showing the Angel, almost reformed from its two halves, charred and dormant. "Well…it kinda looks dead." Asuka announced. "This is merely temporary. The second attack is only a matter of time." Fuyutsuki replied, only for Kaji to speak up, "Well at least we got time to regroup and you can't ask for more than that."

An awkward silent fell upon the room before Asuka rose, "This is all your fault!" She shouted, pointing at Shinji, "If it weren't for you, we would have won…not only that, you stole my EVA color!" Shinji opened his mouth, about to sling back his own argument to her, but the words died in his throat. Turning away, Asuka left.

--

_Oh boy…this is going to be a long night…_

Misato sighed as she looked to the massive stack of papers that threatened to topple over and smother her. Complaints from the local residence, bills from the U.N. bills for the damages, and so on. Hearing the door open, Misato stood up to look over the stack to see Ritsuko. "Looks like you have your hands full. Here are a few more complaints." Plopping a new stack on top of the pile, "Have fun reading them." Another came from Misato, "Don't remind me." It was then she smiled some, looking to her friend, "Surely you have something to save my skin, my dear friend?"

"Like this?" Ritsuko returned the smile before producing a small flash drive, "Thank you Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, it's good to have a friend you can count on." "That's nice…but I'm not the one who will be saving your backside this time not from me. This is Mr. Kaji's idea." Misato first grimaced as she took the drive, but it quickly faded to a small smile, "Kaji? Hmm…"

Walking away from Misato, Ritsuko approached the door before stopping, "By the way…about Shinji…" "…do you think what happened is because of what happened a few days ago?" Turning to Misato, Ritsuko replied, "I can't say for now, but let's just see if anything like that happens again."

--

It was past noon by the time Shinji made his way home from. Still exhausted, both mentally and physically, he passed by countless rows of moving boxes without notice as he opened the door to the apartment he shared with Misato. Eyes widened as he found himself looking upon a certain red-haired German girl, "Asuka?! What are you doing here?!" She began to smirk, "Why are you still here? You've been dumped for the new model." "Huh?" "Misato will be living with me, afterall, it's a much more logical choice when you consider my superior ability, although I rather live with Kaji." Without missing a beat, Asuka began to nitpick upon her surrounding, "Say, just why are Japanese houses so small? I couldn't even get half my stuff in my new room." Upon realizing the amount of boxes that choked the small apartment, Shinji's eyes nearly bugged out. Walking away from Asuka, who was focused on opening and closing the sliding door, she continued, "…and Japanese sure don't have any sense of privacy, how can they live in a room with no locks? Unbelievable. It's weird."

Opening and closing the door, Misato approached her from behind, carrying a small stereo on her shoulder, "The Japanese way is to consider the needs of others before one's own." "Misato." Misato smiled some as she saw both Asuka and Shinji, "How's it going? You two are going to get along real well."

"What's that?"

"What do you mean?"

"This is part of your new training." Misato said, her smile growing a bit wider.

"SAY WHAT?!"

Placing down the files upon the Angel, Misato explained as she kicked back a beer, "There's only one way to destroy the seventh Angel. Execute a simultaneous two point attack on each target's core while the Angel is separated. In other words, an attack on both halves with two EVAs with perfect synchronized timing; coordination between the two of you will be vital to the success of this mission."

"Wait, wasn't there four of them?" Asuka asked, interrupting Misato. "True, there were four at the end, but it seems the other two are mere extensions of the others. We believe that we take out the main cores, the Angel will be fully defeated. To that end, I want the two of you to live together from now on."

"WHAT?!" Staring at each other, Shinji and Asuka weren't happy to say the least. The first to complain was Asuka. "NO WAY! A boy and girl should never sleep under the same roof after the age of seven!" Misato wasn't affect by her logic, "The Angel is currently regenerating itself. It will begin its second assault in six days."

"…but…it-it's impossible." Asuka whined, slumping down. "We have a way of making it possible." Misato replied, a determined look in her eyes, "The master attack pattern will be choreographed with this music." Holding up a cassette tape, she continued, "If you follow it exactly, you will be able to work in sync and completely destroy all targets. We begin now and we attack in six days."

Looking to one another once more, Asuka quickly jerked her head to the other side. "Hmph!"

--

Upon the DenLiner, Momotaros grumbled angrily as he held a bag of ice to his head; even after three days since Kohana punched him, it still hurt. Urataros was only making it worse, "Senpai, it seems your first outing to this world was a bit much. Clearly, you were looking for fish only to find shark." "Shut up you perverted turtle! I'll beat it next time!" "Oh? It seems they found a way to beat it without your help." This seemed to get Momotaros attention. Whipping off the ice bag, he did his best to brush off the thought, "Hn! Like some fancy dance is going to work! I'll show all of you that I can handle it by myself!"

"Oh? Dancing?!" Capturing the attention of Ryuutaros, the purple Imagin almost seemed to latch onto Momotaros' bruised head, "What's going on, Momo-chan?!" "N-nothing! Get off me you snot-nosed brat." Pushing Ryuutaros off, Momotaros got up from his seat and rushed toward the exit. "I'll show you!"

--

Synchronizing with Asuka was proving to be…difficult for Shinji. With each mistake she shouted and blamed him and now she had ran off. Even after she had stormed off, he wasn't safe as Hikari shouted out, "Go and apologize!" He was about to ask why when suddenly Shinji's head snapped backward, gaze directed to the ceiling. "Well? Go! You're the one who made her cry!" Shinji's head lowered, his hair spiked back with a bright crimson streak and his eyes burning red.

"Ore…Sanjou!!"

Looked upon him with confused and widened eyes, Momotaros was rather confused as well. "W-what? Do I have something on my face?" Looking down to Shinji's attire, Momotaros jumped, "WHAT THE HELL AM I WEARING?! No wonder she cried!" Rushing out, door slamming after him, the others sat, confused by Shinji's sudden strange behavior.

"…maybe Asuka is rubbing off of him?" Toji suggested only to get a sharp elbow in the ribs by Hikari.

Misato frowned as she took a sip of her beer. _…That behavior…it was like when the EVA changed…_

--

Fighting off a shiver as he tried to ignore the strange clothing he was wearing, Momotaros muttered, "Gah…I feel so…wimpy in this clothing!" Quickening his pace on the sidewalk, he looked for any sign of a suitable clothing shop in the city. His search, however, came to a suddenly stop, as did his legs. Sniffing the air, he couldn't help but recognize the scent. The scent of…"…Imagin…"

--

The cool air of the convenience store gave Asuka goosebumps as she looked for a certain drink among rows of different beverages. Behind her, sand formed on the ground before rising up as a creature; its lower half suspended in the air above its upper, which seemed to come straight out of the ground.

_Tell me your--?!_

Plowing through the creature with a few steps, unnoticing its presence, Asuka stopped and looked at the sand on the floor, "I swear, people have gotten so lazy these days." Heading to the counter, she noticed Shinji --with a freaky new hairdo, but the clothing was unmistakable-- walking in. Sighing, Asuka admitted, "Yea, I know."

"Huh? Know what?" Shinji replied. His voice was a bit off as well, but Asuka was too annoyed to put full notice on it. "Geez you're dense, just carry these!" She snapped, thrusting her bag of drinks and snacks toward him. Confused, he took them and she walked out. Noticing Shinji was still looking at the shop, she shook her head and grabbed him arm, "C'mon. What's with you?" "It's nothing." Shinji said, almost defensively.

Momotaros could have sworn an Imagin was here, but now it was gone.

--

"No matter what, I'll put Rei and Misato to shame!" Asuka shouted as she drank from a can, standing atop of the bench she and Shinji currently sat on. While Shinji might have thought such a statement was a bit overkill, Momotaros chuckled, "Heh! Now we're talkin', we'll show them!" Glancing over, Asuka raised a brow, "Looks like you're finally acting like a male." Taking a bite out of a store-bought sandwich, she was surprised to find that she didn't have anything to say; expecting Shinji to disagree like usual. Then again, he had acted weird before at school.

Maybe it was nothing…or maybe not.

--

Days had passed and on the night before D-Day, Shinji found himself doing as he always did; lie in bed listening to music. Misato was staying all night at work and Asuka had taken the opportunity to sleep away from him; threatening him to keep away from her before complaining about sleeping on the floor, of course. His thoughts were interrupted as the door slid open, revealing Asuka. Pausing his music player, he listened as she walked into the bathroom. Several moments later, the toilet flushed, the lights went out, and a soft thud as Asuka took to his futon. With widening eyes, his thumb slipped, pressing the rewind button of his player, causing the high pitch sounds of rewinding to fill his ears as he looked to the sleeping Asuka right next to him.

Blushing some with her so close to him; he could make out her nearly exposed breasts in the dim light provided by the outside world. Seeing her lips, Shinji found himself moving his face closer and closer, his lips nearly meeting hers. Suddenly, he saw her lips move and her eyes fill with tears. With a click, the tape had finished rewinding and he heard Asuka mumble in her sleep, "Mama…Mama"

Grabbing a blanket and pillow, Shinji moved away from Asuka. "You're just a child yourself." He said, curling up on the floor. The sounds of sand running caught his attention as the strange blue Imagin who had been introduced as Urataros was before him…or at least kinda. His upper half emerged from the floor, though his lower was hover in the air above him. Shinji would have shrieked in surprise, but he found himself disturbingly growing used to these surprises.

_That was quite a close one, Shinji-kun…_ Urataros said. _I would have been…disappointed. After all, it is more satisfying if you catch a fish then to steal one…_

"_You were watching_?!" Shinji asked in a hushed shout. Urataros merely chuckled before vanishing.

--

With the early morning sun rising, the seventh Angel was back on the move. Breaking through the last defense, it found itself in Neo Tokyo 3. Within their EVAs, Shinji and Asuka awaited deployment. "_Spread your ATs fields as soon as the music starts._" Misato said through the comm. Then follow the mission choreography. You ready?" "Roger!"

"Just remember the moves, Shinji." Asuka said with a smirk, "Full power, maximum performance." "I know that." Shinji replied, "We'll be finished in 62 seconds." The external power detached with a hiss of steam, the timers of the internal power supply appearing on a monitor within the control room. Both EVAs shot up towards the surface, the sounds of classical music filling both Units.

Launching out into the air above the Angel, both Units withdrew collapsible staffs before throwing them at the Angel. Though the Angel smacked them away from hitting it, a field of energy connected between the two, slicing it in half. Reforming as Alpha and Beta, the Angels were under fire instantly and when they shot back, they would only find the EVAs back flipping away from each blast. Landing a marked spot, a shield went up, though it was quickly slashed apart by both Angels. Missiles flew from all directions, distracting the Angel halves. Time was almost up and so far, things looked like they were going according to plan.

That is until it was time to deliver the final strike. As Unit 2 jumped into the air, Unit 1 remained on the ground. "_WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!_" Asuka blared into the comm, beating Misato by a split second. "_You ruined it, you idiot!_" Thrown off by Shinji's sudden change, Asuka landed back on one of the nearby mountains.

Dread filled Misato, unsure of what was wrong with Shinji. It was then Shinji's face appeared on the monitor, though he now sported a long, wavy, and purple dyed bang and eyes hued the same color. "Sorry, Asuka and Misato-chan, but I can't dance to that music, hehe." The Angel had reformed back into on when Unit 1 moved. Pointing to it, the possessed Shinji asked, "Hey. Mind if I defeat you?" With a flash of light, that bullet train from before appeared in the air before connecting to the EVA; unlike before, it didn't turn red, but rather its eyes turned purple. Unit 2's internal battery had died, yet Unit 1's was still going. Still in a state of surprise, the control room was silent until Shinji's voice filled the air.

"Can't hear ya." Suddenly, with a snap of his fingers, the music changed from classical to hip-hop. As if like some command, both Unit 2 and the Angel stiffened -- the former rising to its feet, its power source replenishing as well -- before both began break-dancing in sync with Unit 1. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!" Misato and Asuka shouted in unison, though the former's was in sheer confusion while the other's was pure rage. "The Angel…the Angel is dancing?!" Hyuuga muttered in disbelief as they all watched.

As Unit 2 and the Angel continued moving their feet, Ryuutaros had Unit 1 in a headspin. Reaching out to grab one of the discarded rifles, by the time he returned to his feet, it had transformed into a massive pistol of sorts. Spinning, he fired a behind the back shot, missing several times before finally hitting the Angel, forcing it to split. "Not only is this dance horrible, but so is his shot now!" Asuka lamented as her EVA moved against her wishes. Appearing in the corner of the screen, Shinji replied, "_That's not nice, Asuka-chan._"

As the Angel split, both halves discovered that they were still under Ryuutaros' power as they continued dancing. Unit 2 picked up a rifle of its own as it shuffled in sync with the beat of the hip-hop music. Both Units had reached the Angel halves, sneaking in punches, kicks, and blasts through their dancing.

"Heheh." Producing the belt and pass, he quickly put it on before swiping the pass over the belt buckle. "Henshin!"

_GUN FORM_

Another swipe of the pass…

_FULL CHARGE_

It was there that both Units were spinning away from the Angel halves, allowing the two to begin reform despite their forced dancing. Energy began to gather in the barrel of Unit 1 before both came to a stop in similar poses; guns pointed at the reforming Angel. Ryuutaros giggled some, "Bye bye!"

Pulling the trigger, a blast of energy shot forth toward the combining Angel halves, accompanied by Unit 2 unloading with its rifle. As the blast struck, it left a massive hole where the two main cores once were located before the Angel erupted with a crucifix-shaped explosion.

Ryuutaros giggled a bit more before he threw out a peace sign through the EVA. Smoke filled the air from the improperly aimed shots which left three buildings damaged and one mountain side gone. Misato sighed, "Maybe they'll just be happy the Angel's gone?" She said wishfully, doubting she would get lucky.


	7. Omake One: Parallel Universe

**Omake One: Parallel Universe**

**--**

Ryutaros: "What's taking so long?! He's so slow, so slow!"

Momotaros: "I can't see the screen, you snot-nosed brat!"

Sieg: "Why haven't I been mentioned in the story yet?"

Kintaros: "He must be writing my first fight! My strength must be making him cry so much that he can't see his own typing!"

Momotaros: "Like he would spend anytime on you guys, I'm the lead!"

Ryutaros: "But Momo-chan got beat up in his first fight, hehe."

Momotaros: "Why you--!!"

Urataros: :Sighs: "Yun-kun has been so busy lately. Surely the amount of girls he's stringed along through writing about me must be the reason. So busy that he's still working on chapter six and asked us to do this Omake for his readers."

Momotaros: "Bah! Like any girl would like a perverted turtle! He hasn't finished because he's lazy!"

Hana: "Momo!" :Gut punches Momotaros: "Quit wasting time! We haven't even started."

Momotaros: "Ugh. Why you little--!" :Realizes she's glaring at him and backs down.: "F-fine!"

Hana: "The topic of this Omake is: Alternate Den-O Stories. Before Neon Genesis Den-O was written, we were each asked to suggest a crossover idea."

Momotaros: "He didn't even use any of our ideas, and I had a great one! Filled with action, suspense and explosions!"

--

**Momotaros' Suggestion: Metal Gear Momo**

**-**

The Alaskan winds were cold and bitter, carrying with them the heavy snow of an approaching blizzard. A genome soldier did another lap of his patrol of Shadow Moses' helipad. His shift was almost at an end and soon he would be relaxing in a heated room with some hot coffee.

Unfortunately the cardboard box that currently rested before the elevator said otherwise. "A box? What's this box doing here?" He murmured to himself as he approached. It seemed to be harmless, granted it was out of place. Studying it for a moment, he kicked it with the toe of his boot.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?!" The box was suddenly tossed aside. There stood Momotaros, clad in a sneaking suit complete with a bandana about his forehead.

"!"

Reaching for his radio, he would never make that call as a haymaker knocked him out cold. Chuckling to himself, Momotaros knelt down and placed two fingers against the side of his head.

"Heh, I reached the helipad."

On the other side of the codec came Urataros, "Good job, Senpai."

"You?!"

"Naomi-chan is here too."

"Hi Momo-chan!" Naomi chimed happily, "If you need to save your game, call me!"

"Heh, sorry Naomi-chan, but I won't be needing any saves." With that he cut off the codec, rising.

-

The DARPA Chief's cell door was suddenly unlocked. Cautiously Momotaros stepped out, only to have a gun pointed at his head. "Don't move!" A girl? Turning to face the soldier, she shouted again, "Don't move!!"

"Heh, what? Is this your first time handling a gun? Look, your hands are shaking." Clenching his fists, he chuckled, "Think you can do it, ya rookie?" The girl suddenly threw down her gun before whipping off her mask.

"HANA?!"

"MOMO!!"

She clocked him with an uppercut, causing him to land nearly a yard back. Blacking out, the last thing he heard was Urataros on the codec.

"Senpai? Senpai?! SENPAI!!"

--

Urataros: "While your suggestion was good, Senpai, it lacked something all great stories need; romance."

--

**Urataros' Suggestion: Ura Muyo!**

**-**

The Misaki residence began the day quietly, Urataros finding himself idly playing with his toy fishing rod. The sounds of diligent cooking could be heard from the kitchen as Sasami made breakfast. While too young now for him, Urataros knew that she would be beautiful soon enough. In the meantime…

"Good morning, Ura-kun…" Ryoko's sly voice murmured as she draped her arms around him from behind. Despite how quietly she said it, however, another was certain to hear it. "Don't you dare touch my beloved Lord Urataros!!" Ayeka shouted. "He's mine!" Ryoko shot back. Grabbing one of his arms, they began a tug-of-war over the Imagin.

"Ryoko-chan, Ayeka-chan!" Urataros pleaded as he felt as if they were close to tearing off his limbs. "There's plenty of me to sha--" "NO!" The two agreed on that matter and that matter alone.

--

Urataros: "Perhaps I was too hasty with my suggestion. As much as having so many girls under one roof would be blissful, I could not stand to watch them fight over me."

Momotaros: "Feh! You just didn't like it because you could only choose one of them!"

Kintaros: "Enough! It is time to see a truly manly idea!"

--

**Kintaros' Suggestion: Fist of the Kin Star**

-

The desert winds blew hot as he stood before the gang of biker bandits, one of which had his foot pressing down on a small girl's head. The others began to circle the lone figure who opposed them, chuckling as they saw such easy prey. Chained weapons jangled, blades gleamed in the scorching sun's light.

Raising a fist, he pressed it against his jaw before pushing, filling the air with the brief sounds of his neck popping. That was the gang's cue as they lunged forth, preparing to kill him. The first flew back into his fellows as an open palm slammed into his chest. Unfortunately the others struck true.

Chuckles first filled the air, only before they realized that none of their blades pierced his flesh, nor any blows had affected him. Throwing them off of him with the casual demeanor of a shrug, he approached the leader who still grinded his boot against the poor girl's head. The leader gave a smug grin, "Your weak attacks are nothing against 2 of Diamonds gang!" He shouted in defiance as his men rose as if nothing had happened.

The figure spoke, "My strength has made your men cry."

As if the words themselves had power, the gang suddenly froze. Gripping their faces, their heads began to swell. Their leader's eyes widened as he saw them burst…into waterfall tears.

"Such power!" His courage leaving him, the gang leader ran off, leaving his men to cry. Kintaros approached the girl before handing her a tissue. "Wipe your tears with this."

--

Ryutaros: "My turn, my turn!"

Momotaros: "Bah! What idea could a snot-nosed brat like you have?!"

Ryutaros: "This one!"

--

**Ryutaros' Suggestion: Tarosmon**

-

Humming to himself, Ryutaros skipped along through the woods. He had finally been allowed by Airi to collect and train Tarosmon and Professor Owner had given him three Tarosmon to start his journey. It didn't take long before he ran into trouble though.

"Prepare for trouble."

"And make it double."

"Yuto."

"Deneb."

"Team Zero blast off at the speed of time."

"I can't think of anything that rhymes. I apologize!"

"DENEB!"

Ryutaros giggled some. "My first Tarosmon fight, yay! I'll choose you first! Go Momo-chan!" Throwing out a Tarosball, it opened, revealing Momotaros, or rather his head on the body of Charmander.

"Momo, Momo!" (Translation: "What the?!")

"Momo-chan, headbutt!"

"Momo, Momo, Momotaros!" ("Why should I have to?!")

"Deneb! Fingershot!"

"Roger!" Extending his index fingers and thumbs out to resemble guns, he fired on Momotaros, knocking the Tarosmon out.

"Huh? Momo-chan's out already? Oh well. Kame-chan, I choose you!"

Another Tarosball was thrown, revealing a creature with Urataros' head on a Squirtle.

"Ura, Urataros…" ("How embarrassing…")

"Kame-chan, water gun!" Urataros suddenly shot forth a jet of water from his mouth, yet it seemed to have no affect on Deneb.

"Deneb! Another fingershot!"

"Roger!"

With another barrage of shots, Urataros was out. Ryutaros took hold of his last Tarosball. "Go, Kuma-chan!" Throwing it, the ball brought forth a creature with Kintaros head on Pikachu's body.

"Kintaros!" ("You'll cry!")

"Kuma-chan, Dynamic Chop!"

Kintaros suddenly jumped up high into the air, only to come crashing down on Team Zero, launching them into the sky.

"LOOKS LIKE TEAM ZERO'S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"

--

Ryutaros: "Heh heh!"

Momotaros: "What the hell was that?!"

Ryutaros: "Momo-chan lost again!"

Momotaros: "Why you!!"

Sieg: "Now my turn has arrived. Every good story needs intrigue, especially when it involves royalty such as myself."

--

**Sieg's Suggestion: SiegNote**

**-**

Sitting alone in his royal chambers, Sieg struggled over the morality of using the mystical item before him. Who was he to play God, and yet he knew he could do the world so much good. Opening the notebook, he took up a quill pen. Facing final thoughts, he finally wrote the first name down: Momotaros.

Sitting in the DenLiner, Momotaros took a swig of his coffee before he froze, dropping the cup. Gripping his chest, he fell over, bringing the attention of the other passengers. Was he dying? He felt as if the world was growing larger…or was he shrinking?!

"WHAT THE HELL?!"

Meanwhile in a dark room, a TV monitor suddenly lit up, depicting a blank white screen save for the letter U.

--

Hana: "That's the last one, I hope you enjoyed it."

Ryutaros: "Huh? Hana-chan didn't suggest one?"

Momotaros: "Heh, I bet she would have suggested some girly magical girl ide—OOF!!" :He doubled over as Hana knocked the wind out of him and stormed off.:

Urataros: "Chapter Six is coming soon! See you then!"


	8. Chapter Six: The Scorpion Sleeps

**Chapter Six: The Scorpion Sleeps**

--

"Yuuto! Yuuto!" Deneb said, trying vainly to catch up with the boy while weighed down with the souvenirs he had purchased. He had promised himself that he wouldn't but when he couldn't resist! The KingLiner was like a candy store for the Imagin. Yuuto finally stopped, massaging his temples. As Deneb caught up the Imagin apologized, "Forgive me, Yuuto, but I….well…" Deciding just to bow, he ended up dumping the various shirts and plushies upon the boy. "Yuuto!"

"DENEB!!" Bursting forth from the pile dumped on him, he grabbed Deneb before DDTing the Imagin against the ground. Deneb apologies were muffled as one plushies of the Station Master was pressed against his mouth. Getting up, Yuuto sighed, "Deneb, let's go." He commanded before heading towards the ZeroLiner.

If what the Station Master told him was right, they didn't have time to mess around: The DenLiner was lost.

--

With the chiming melody of the bell, lunch had began.

"Damn, what was boring day!" Touji lamented as he leaned back his desk, giving out a large yawn. Smiling some, Shinji couldn't help but agree, but he couldn't help but enjoy such days, especially after the last Angel fight.

_Man…they're never going to let me hear the end of that…_

Not only did Ryuutaros ruin the mission plan, but the damages were almost worse than the previous attack! Not to mention Asuka hadn't spoken to him since then. "Hey Shinji…" Glancing over to Kensuke, "What is it?" "A lot of girls have been asking around about you." Touji broke in, "Yeah, a lot of hotties. Man! Who knew you were such ladies' man."

_Ladies' Man?_

Now he was confused, "What the hell are you talking about?" Unfortunately, before either could answer, it seemed he had been found.

"Shinji-sama!"

Turning to the door, his jaw nearly dropped to the floor as he saw the crowd of girls fighting to get through the doorway first. On cue, a flash of blue shot through him, or rather, in him. Running a hand through his hair, a blue streak appeared. When that same hand passed over his face, a pair of glasses could be found upon the bridge of his nose. Rising from his seat, a smirk came to Shinji's face, "Girls, girls. I assume you that the wait is well worth it, so there is no need to fight." The words were enough to make their knees weak and a collective swoon on their lips.

Turning to them, he gave a small smile, "I'm off to lunch." With that he made his way towards the crowd of girls.

Kensuke and Touji simply stared at each other, then back to Shinji in disbelief.

--

Nursing a cup of coffee, Misato wearily sighed in relief as the last of the paperwork from the last battle was finished. The whole thing had played out like her own personal nightmare though it was worse than any nightmare since she couldn't wake up from this one. Taking a sip of her coffee, she grimaced as she found it ice cold. Putting it down, she found a new cup of hot coffee extended to her from Ritsuko. Smiling weakly, she took it, "Thanks."

"You should be thankful that the Commander left before the second attack…" Ritsuko said before taking a seat. "I guess you know why I decided to stop by." Misato nodded, "Because of Shinji, right?" Ritsuko's nod confirmed it. "What do you think it is? Could it be another Angel?" "The thought did occur, but if it were an Angel, we would have picked it up either time. We need to figure what happened to Shinji quickly before someone else gets too interested." Misato frowned some as the thought of it. Shinji was already uneasy being just as EVA pilot, and she didn't even want to imagine him being some experiment.

Taking a sip of her fresh coffee, Misato sighed, "We better get started."

--

"Just look at him!" Asuka seethed, "That two-faced little…is this how he always acts here?" She asked Hikari, who shook her head, "No, he's never act like this before. Maybe being an EVA pilot's gotten to his head?" It seemed her answer was enough for Asuka, who huffed and walked away.

Once more reclined in that yawn chair, Shinji relaxed like some Greek king while a harem of girls ranging from his classmates to girls who had never met Shinji before today seemed to be happy doing anything to make him comfortable. Two smiled as they waved makeshift fans to cool him off while another giggled as he whispered sweet nothings in her ear in between eating grapes given to him one-by-one from another.

As she watched, Hikari noticed something strange. Shinji's eyes; they were as blue as the oceans and they seemed almost as deep. Finding herself almost hypnotized, she shook it off, looking away from him before it hit her. "Shinji doesn't have blue eyes."

--

Storming down the hallway, Asuka felt like a pot that was over foaming with boiling water. "He acts all innocent alone, but here he thinks he's some god! Someone needs to put him in his place!" She grumbled to herself. Feeling as though someone were following her, she paused and turned, yet found no one. Turning back, her eyes widened as she found herself nearly face-to-face with something not human.

To be honest, it was more like face-to-foot, but it only made the thing stranger. It appeared to be made of sand; its upper half rose from the ground while its disembodied lower half hovered over its head. Its hands were giant pincers and its lower half possessed a barb-tipped tail, no doubt suggesting the thing was a scorpion. Multiple glowing eyes fell upon her before its hollow voice spoke out.

_Your wish shall be granted…_

Rising from the ground, the creature's appearance changed; its sand-like surface became smooth and ink-black. Transparent purple fluid leaked from its stinger and its glowing eyes now blazed with a dark crimson hue. Asuka backed away, her mind taking a few moments from shock before confusion struck. "Wish? What wish?!" By then, however, it was gone.

--

Impassive eyes, the color of blood, watched from the distance as Shinji conversed and flirted with the girls surrounding him. No, it was someone masquerading as Ikari, as strange as the thought was. Approaching with silent steps, the group wouldn't realize her presence until she was in front of them and announced herself with a soft, quiet question.

"Who are you?"

The being in Shinji's body looked at her with blue eyes only before giving a smile, "Rei-chan, you're looking well today." Rising from his seat, he gestured to the girls, "These are my friends; Hitomi-chan, Sakura-chan, Mio-chan, Setsuna-chan, Yayoi-chan, Tomoe-chan, and last, but not least, Kasumi-chan." He replied.

"Who are you?"

The repetitious question struck much harder now, as a faint flinch in the imposter's eyes held. Laughing some, he turned to the other girls, "Forgive me, but it seems Rei-chan has forgotten her memories. I'll be back after I take her to the nurse." With that he walked away, followed by Rei.

Everything was wrong about him; from the way he spoke to his walking gait to the aura of confidence that surrounded him. None of it was Shinji's. Once they were alone, Shinji paused, "I must confess, Rei-chan…I am not who I seem to be." Turning to face her, he took her hand, "This is my true self. Like an oyster, I shut myself out of this world most of the time, but now…I have began to open up." Those blue eyes of his seemed to shine brightly, as if suggesting that he was telling the truth. They seemed almost hypnotic.

"Liar…"

He was someone who was gifted at lying, no doubt, for he had another one up his sleeve. Before he could say it, however, they were interrupted by several screams. Turning, they saw a creature resemble a scorpion approaching. Shinji frowned somewhat before muttering, "An Imagin…"

--

Like a lightning bolt striking home, Momotaros sat up from his seat on the DenLiner, "An Imagin! I knew it!" He recalled sensing an Imagin the day before. Chuckling like a madman, he made a dash towards the exit…only to be flung back. "What the?! What gives, you perverted turtle?!"

_I just found a nice little fishing spot, senpai. I'd like to fish a little bit longer._

"What the hell does that mean?!"

--

"Excuse me, Rei-chan." Urataros announced. Taking out the Den-O belt, he whipped it about his waist as he approached the Imagin. With an audible click, the belt was fastened, allowing him to withdraw the pass. Casually he swept it across the buckle of the belt.

"Henshin."

_ROD FORM_

The black spandex-like armor of Den-O's platform form appeared instantly, surrounded by several pieces of glowing armor that turned and twisted before attaching and fastening themselves upon the platform in bright blue plates. The mask piece descended down across head before coming to a stop and fastening itself on. The armor held a turtle motif, resembling Urataros' nature.

When he was less than two yards from the scorpion Imagin, he spoke. "You just ruined my pleasant lunch. Won't you let me string you along?" The scorpion didn't say anything, instead slashing out with his pincer hand. Sparks sprayed from Den-O chest plate, the impact of the blow causing him to stumble back.

_Don't be so cocky, you perverted turtle bastard!_ Momotaros shouted in his head. Urataros chuckled some, "It isn't fun unless you let the fish fight back, senpai." Taking hold of two pieces of the DenGasher, he began to assemble his weapon. The Imagin charged forth with another pincer slash, but the Kamen Rider kicked him square in the chest, throwing him backwards. With the DenGasher complete, it extended out into its full rod length. The Imagin charged again, only to get slapped away by the tip of the DenGasher. Twirling it about him, Urataros swung again.

As he attacked the Imagin, he noticed two things; one, the Imagin was putting up a very weak fight and secondly, Rei had yet to move. He didn't think she had been fazed by the out of ordinary events that had just taken place. Suddenly something shot forth from behind the Imagin; its tail. Bringing up the rod, Urataros let out a small gasp as the tail curved in the air, striking him in the chest. Flying backwards, the armor scattering as Urataros separated from Shinji, both hit the ground hard. A hollow chuckle came from the scorpion as it raised a pincer toward them.

_The poison from my tail will soon kick in. You'll be squirming and writhing on the ground like the pitiful insects you are!_

Turning, the scorpion Imagin found Asuka just approaching the scene. Another hollow laugh was given as it directed its attention to her.

_I have granted your wish, I have put them in their place…now, it is time for you to fulfill the end of our bargain._

Though the Imagin's experience with mortals was few, he knew that most would be frightened alone by his appearance. All he had to do now was slip into the past through her. It should have been easy, but it seemed the girl was not afraid as she sucker punched him.

"I never agreed to this!" Asuka shouted out as the Imagin doubled over, taken by surprise. A swift kick pushed him back a few feet, groaning as Asuka rushed over to Shinji. His flesh was burning and slick with sweat. Turning back to the Imagin, she began to crack her knuckles, "All right, where's the antidote?"

_Ugh…like I would tell you!_

Rising, the Imagin it reared by its pincer, ready to attack its contract holder for her defiant ways. Unfortunately a sword slash interrupted it. Gripping its chest, the Imagin ran off, leaving them for now. Chuckling to himself, Momotaros rested his sword on his shoulder, "What a wimp!" "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" A kick launched the Imagin forward and onto his face. "What the hell was that for?!" Momotaros shouted back as he got up, gripping his face some. "I was about to get that bastard to tell me where the antidote was!" Asuka replied. Grumbling to himself, Momotaros had briefly forgotten about that, having gotten caught up in his heroics.

Walking out from behind Momotaros came Hana, the small girl looking to Urataros and Shinji then to Asuka and Rei. "Let's go." "Go where?" Asuka asked.

"The DenLiner...then I'll explain what's going on…"


	9. Chapter Seven: Crimson Rider

**Chapter Seven: Crimson Rider**

--

His flesh burned like a fire had been set upon him, sweat making it both slick and sticky to the touch. Plagued by nightmarish hallucinations, the boy writhed in his sleep, making it hard for Naomi to keep the wet cloth on his forehead. Nearby, Urataros suffered the same way, though he had calmed moments ago. Standing in the middle of the aisle was Asuka, still seething. "Will someone explain to me just what is going on?!"

"Bah! Like we have to tell ya anything!" Momotaros snapped, causing Asuka to stomp forth, "LIKE YOU SHOULD TALK! If it weren't for you, those two wouldn't be in any pain!" Momotaros flinched but his pride made him shoot back, "Like some loud-mouth brat like you could do anything!"

That was the last straw. Clenching her hand into a fist, she reared back and punched Momotaros in the face. Momotaros closed his eyes, bracing for the inevitable wave of pain, yet as the blow connected, found that the agonizing pain he was used to wasn't there. "Hehe! Is that all!"

"Momo!" A pain familiar yet unknown to any other pain filled his body as a tiny fist buried itself into his side. A dry gurgle escaped his mouth as he fell aside to Hana. Glancing to Asuka, she said, "In a way, he does have a point. The Imagin would have probably gone back to the past hadn't we shown up." " Imagin? The past? "

"Indeed…" Stepping into the dining car, the Owner looked upon the two poisoned. "The beings you see around you and the one you encountered are beings from another time and this…" He gestured to the train they were on, "…is a train of time."

--

The scorpion Imagin didn't know what to do with itself. Not only had he lost his contract holder, but she had made a fool out of him! Fortunately, a chaotic rampage was always a cure for this ailment. Pincer-like claws sliced through brick and concrete, causing the occupants of the little grocery to flee for their lives.

Tipping over another display shelf of produce, it found himself to not be alone. Turning, it found itself before a group of armed police officers, though it seemed they were close to soiling themselves rather than protect others.

"H-h-hold it right there!"

The Imagin cackled as it raised a claw.

--

Silence crept in as the Owner finally finished his explanation, allowing Asuka to soak it all in. Meanwhile, Rei could be found placing a cool rag on Shinji's head, who had finally come to a rest amidst his tossing and turning. Behind her, she could hear Momotaros' pacing come to a stop before he sniffed the air. "I smell an Imagin."

"It's probably that bastard that did this to them!" Asuka replied, standing up. "Looks like its up to me!"

"What?! "

"You heard me! Since Shinji can't transform to fight, I'll fight for him!"

Momotaros flinched, "No! Nononononono!! I rather fight that Imagin alone than with you!"

"Who says I was going to fight with you?! I'll just pick somebody else like…you!" Asuka pointed to Ryutaros, who looked up from his drawings before looking back down. "No."

"What do you mean no?"

"Scary Asuka-chan called my dance stupid." He replied. Asuka looked confused for a moment before his eyes widened and her brows narrowed, "SO YOU WERE THE ONE WHO MESSED UP THE DANCE!! Hmph! Fine, how about….you….?" Looking to Kintaros, the bear Imagin was in a deep sleep. Gritting her teeth, he walked up before smacking the Imagin hard, yet it proved to be futile.

Clenching her hands, she turned back to Hana, "Isn't there somebody else who is at _least _dependable?!" The little girl paused for a moment before replying, "…Well…there is one more…"

--

Tires squealed as Misato stomped down on the gas, a trail of smoke and dust and a pair of tire marks left as her car shot off like a blur. News reports had spoken of a strange creature emerging from the school where the children attended, and neither of them answered their phones, prompting her to see if they were all right or not. She could only wonder if this was an Angel attack or if this creature were something different altogether.

--

Soft music filled the air of the car Hana led Asuka into, playing from an antique record player. Looking around, Asuka found the setup was a bit elaborate despite that looked like to be once a storage car. Seeing Hana approach a bed with thin white veils, Asuka found the one the little girl must have been talking about.

"A bird?"

The Imagin stirred only before taking to his feet in a flash, possessing a certain grace about him that the others lacked. "_I_ am no bird. I am a prince, and you would best not show such disrepec—Ow!!" He tensed, wincing as Hana dug her heel into the top of his left foot. "Hana-hime! I –ah, ow-- did not see you." The little girl backed away, crossing her arms before she spoke, "Sieg, we need you to become Den-O…"

"Transform with you? Surely people will start rumors—"

"With her." Hana corrected, annoyance crossing her features. Sieg approached Asuka, examining her closely. Walking back near that elaborate bed, Sieg finally answered. "No." "WHY NOT?!" Asuka cried out as he reclined once more on his bed. Before the Imagin could give off his excuse, a soft voice broke through.

"He's gone."

Hana and Asuka turned to see Rei standing there. "Who's gone?" Hana asked.

"The blue one…Urataros."

Erupting into the dining cart, Hana looked around to see that Urataros was indeed gone. "Momo!" Seeing the red Imagin sit up in a booth, she stormed over, "Why didn't you stop him?!" "Stop who?" A smack to the back of his head caused Momotaros' head to snap down and bounce off the table. "Urataros, you moron!" Writhing in pain, the red Imagin grabbed the back of his head.

"What the hell is wrong with you?! Turtle is…right…." Looking to where Urataros was lying a few moments ago, Momotaros found that the blue Imagin was gone. Frowning, Hana looked back to Asuka, "Let's go."

--

Throwing the last frightened officer like a mere twig, the Scorpion Imagin didn't even bother to watch the poor man slam against the nearby brick wall. The Imagin found that this was a great way to work off its earlier frustration. A nearby shriek was enough to tell it who its next victim was. Cackling, it turned its attention on a high-school girl. The Imagin's tail reared back, only before it shot forth toward the girl.

Only to be deflected.

Turning to the source, the Imagin found itself facing the Imagin from before, just now without his contract owner.

_I'm surprised you can still stand…_

Urataros' legs felt like jelly as he approached, trying his best to look as cool as usual, but he knew that he was stumbling far too much for normalcy. "I may be sick, but that won't stop me from getting my catch." Leaning on the Urarod, the turtle Imagin quickly added, "Won't you let me string you along?"

The scorpion Imagin charged forth, one claw reared back. Bringing the Urarod up, Urataros quickly understood just how weak he was as the blow threw him off his feet. Quickly rolling to avoid getting stomped on, he scrambled to his feet. He studied the Imagin, looking for that certain part. Bracing himself, he blocked another claw swiped, though he managed to keep on his feet this time. The scorpion's tail began to twitch –no doubt preparing another sting—though with a quick punch to the face, its attention was now to grab its face in pain. Swinging his rod forth, Urataros winced as he found the attack extremely clumsy with his condition; a fact understated as the scorpion Imagin had enough time to recover from the punch and avoid the slash. Throw onto his back as a claw raked across his chest, Urataros gasped for breath as he could only watch the scorpion's tail rise over its shoulder. As it prepared to inject another dose of venom into the turtle, he noticed that a small part near the stinger was dimly glowing; there it was!

_This time you won't be getting up…_

The tail shot forth, only to miss its target as a motorcycle seemingly dropped from the heavens; its back wheel slamming onto the Imagin's head. Landing, the bike skidded before turning a 180, revealing a very strange sight. Taking the helmet off, it was Asuka, yet her eyes burned with a familiar crimson hue, and a dark shade of red streaked across her hair, which was now pulled into a ponytail.

Taking that familiar pose, Asuka spoke out in that oh-so familiar voice,

"Ore…Sanjou!!"

The scorpion Imagin paused, tilting its head in confusion as Asuka began to crack her knuckles, standing between the scorpion and Urataros, "I'm in a rush, so today I'm starting at a Climax!"

_What are you doing?! That's my contact holder!_

"If it were up to me, I'd let you have her, but your luck's ran out today!" Momotaros announced through Asuka before he withdrew that belt. Slapping it across her hip, it swung around her waist before connecting near the buckle. Pulling out the pass, he swept it across the buckle, "Henshin!"

_SWORD FORM_

Crimson armor connected onto black spandex, locking into place before that peach-shaped visor descended over Asuka's face. Coming to a stop with a squeal of metal, the peach parted, creating the eyes. Stretching once everything settled, Momotaros began to chuckle as he took hold of the DenGasher components. "I've been thinking of a new hissatsu." He announced as he began approaching the scorpion, combining the parts of the DenGasher. The Scorpion Imagin charged forth, one of its claws reared back, seeking to take advantage, only to have Momotaros leap back away from the slash. With only the blade left to assemble, he flung the part at the scorpion's face, charging forth.

"GO, GO, GO!!"

As the part bounced off the Imagin's face, it spun back towards the rider, attaching to the DenGasher and contorting into the crimson blade of Momotaros' weapon right before it bit into the scorpion's right side. Laughing like a madman, he gave out a howl. "How I've missed this!!" Several more slashes were giving, propelling the enemy Imagin backwards. Resting his weapon onto Asuka's shoulder, the rider replied, "Like I told ya, from start to finish, I'm at a Climax!"

_Shut up! Shut up and die!!_

The Scorpion Imagin's tail flicked up before it lashed out. Having completely forgotten about it, Momotaros found himself unprepared to dodge. Bringing up his sword like a shield, he braced for impact; One that never came. The scorpion screamed out in pain, prompting Momotaros to look past his sword. On the ground was the scorpion's stinger, and nearby on one knee was Urataros. "Turtle! What do you think you're doing?! This punk is mine!" "Sorry sempai, but Shinji-kun and I need something from him…" Urataros said weakly, picking up the severed stinger. "Moron! You can't even stand straight anymore!" Approaching Urataros, Momotaros flung Urataros' arm over his shoulders and jerked the turtle up onto his feet. Before he could help his fellow Imagin to the DenLiner, he heard shuffling behind him, followed by a hoarse shout.

_THIS IS FAR FROM OVER!!_

Turning Asuka's head, Momotaros saw the scorpion charging forth, preparing for a claw slash. Yet before the scorpion could even reach the two, a pale hand was brought forth, slamming into its face and throwing it backwards.

The usually emotionless Rei was cooler and calmer than normal, possessing a grace unseen before from her. The source was recognizable once he saw that her hair was cornrowed before ending a large ponytail with white streaks and feathers adorning it. It became even more apparent with the white feather boa around her neck, and, of course, that fact that her irises were now white.

"You! Why are you here?!"

Speaking through Rei, Sieg's voice held its usual arrogant tone as ever. "Hana-hime requested that I make sure Friend Number Two was all right. Obviously, it would be up to me to save you." "The only one who will need saving is you!" Unfazed by his threat, Sieg walked pass the two before gently taking Urataros. "I will let your slander go this time, since I am in no mood to fight, so I will leave this up to you." With that, he began to help Urataros away, though rather awkwardly for one who wanted to remain looking graceful.

"Heh, looks like it's my lucky day!" Momotaros declared as he approached the rising scorpion. Pointing his sword at the other Imagin, he added, "…and your unlucky day." Pulling out the pass, he swiped it over the buckle.

_FULL CHARGE_

Crimson sparks began to form around Momotaros' sword. "My hissatsu attack…Part Six!" The blade of his sword shot forth, still bonded to the rest by the sparks of energy. Slashing out, the disconnected blade swung out in a wide arc, slicing through the scorpion. Another horizontal slash would bring the blade back through before the rider raised his sword overhead. Bringing the weapon down, the blade sliced through the Imagin vertically, causing it to erupt in an explosion. The blade shot forth from the flames, connecting back with the rest of the sword. Resting it on the girl's shoulder, he chuckled, "Done."

Emerging from her body, Momotaros' image went from transparent to solid as he landed beside her. His absence caused the armor and weapon to vanish, leaving only Asuka, who proceeded to throw a snap kick at his stomach. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT ABOUT?!" Asuka shouted, "There's no way in hell I would let you give me to something like that!" Though her kicks had no effect, her shouting was enough to make the Imagin wince. After a few more rounds, the two of them made their way back to the train. Hopefully by now Shinji and Urataros would be all right. However, both were unaware of the purple-haired woman who had been watching for quite a while.

Flipping open her cell phone, Misato wasn't sure how Ritsuko would take this discovery.


End file.
